Arizona State football: Spring practice preview (new staff, new culture, new lines and no time to settle in)

Seventh of 12 spring previews to be published over the course of six weeks. Coming early next week: Cal and Washington State.

This preview follows the same general format used for Colorado, Stanford, Utah, USC, UCLA and Oregon, with tweaks to reflect specific situations.

ARIZONA STATE

Spring starts: March 13

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Spring game: April 13 ( 7 p.m., Pac-12 Networks)

*** The big picture.

Yes, the staff must learn the roster, gauge the commitment level of each player and refine the schemes to suit the personnel.

All standard spring items for a new coaching staff, right?

But here’s the twist, as the Hotline sees it: The players are looking at the new coaches in exactly the same fashion.

For ASU, the feeling-out process works both ways — an unusual situation created by the unusual Herm Edwards hiring, the shift to the unusual “new leadership model” and the unusual reaction (not exactly positive) by media and fans.

The players aren’t living under a cone of silence; they’re aware of the skepticism and consternation that accompanied the Edwards hire.

They might not share those doubts, but they’re surely curious to see what Edwards, who hasn’t coached in college in 30 years, and his staff have to offer.

The big picture, in other words, is a mirror image, with both players and coaches wondering what they have in the other.

*** Coach: Herm Edwards

Five-year win totals: Not entirely applicable, so we’ll instead provide Edwards’ record over eight seasons as an NFL head coach (five with the Jets, three with the Chiefs):

10-69-76-1010-64-129-74-122-14

Contract status: Signed through 2022

Heat index: Edwards has cover and cushion thanks to his boss, athletic director Ray Anderson, who replaced an 46-game winner over the past six years with a zero-game coach over the past nine years.

That said, any slip-ups that draw attention to Edwards’ lack of experience — thus far, he has avoided them — would make his task more difficult.

Org chart change: We’ll skip the New Leadership Model — the org-chart change of all org-chart changes — and instead note the continuity provided by Likens, who coached the receivers last season and slides into the play-calling role.

Scheme change: Edwards has made several sharp staff hires, including Pierce, who should bolster recruiting efforts in Southern California, and Gonzales, the defensive coordinator.

Gonzalez will deploy the 3-3-5 scheme he learned at San Diego State under mastermind Rocky Long. It’s similar to ASU’s previous alignment (with the Spur linebacker), but is radical enough, in theory, to cause trouble for opposing Pac-12 offenses.

With a proven starter and talented reserves (Blake Barnett, the Alabama transfer, and Dillon Sterling-Cole) the Sun Devils possess one of the Pac-12’s top QB depth charts.

Units in the spotlight I: Defensive line and linebacker.

Heavy attrition hit the front seven — Smallwood and Wicker off the line, Calhoun and Sam at linebacker — and it wasn’t the stoutest of defenses to begin with: The Sun Devils yielded 4.9 yards per rush last season (96th nationally).

Add Crump’s recovery from injury to the list of departures, and there are holes throughout both units.

The 3-3-5 scheme, which add a defensive back, should mitigate the issues up front. But the Devils seemingly cannot avoid a heavy reliance on inexperienced players.

The line will undergo significant shuffling due to attrition, position changes and the arrival of two potential starters in the fall (Hemsley and Tucker).

Wilkins, who was hit often last season, is only 200 pounds.

*** Bottom line on the Sun Devils

It’s not difficult to identify a handful of talented pieces, including second-team all-conference cornerback Chase Lucas.

But against the backdrop of a new staff, new schemes and revamped lines of scrimmage is a schedule that features Michigan State (likely top 10) in Week Two, San Diego State (on the road) in Week Three and a trip to Seattle (good luck with that) in Week Four.

Overlay all the new pieces with the treacherous September, and ASU faces as much urgency in spring practice as any team in the conference.

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